June 28, 2007 by Rob.

My 250 Amp DC breaker (just $225) came last week and I had some time tonight to get it installed. The purpose of the breaker is the interrupt the traction circuit before the 500 amp fuse blows.  The breaker fit perfectly in the space behind the seat and in front of rear box.

I also tied a string (not shown) to the switch so that I can quickly turn off the breaker without moving the seats.

Posted in Parts, Pictures, Conversion, Planning | No Comments »

June 28, 2007 by Rob.

Leo came over yesterday to checkout and drive the RAVolt. For safety, I wanted someone who knows something about cars to check out the brakes and suspension. I was also hearing a “thumping” sound when I turned that could have been coming from my CV joints.

After driving the RAVolt, Leo agreed that there was something funny. He could not find any problems when he checked the joints, suspension, and axle mounts. He was pretty amused when he found the actual problem: Alex and I had forgotten to tighten the front lug nuts after we put the axle’s back in!

Luckily, we caught the problem early before the car was damaged. The road performance of the RAVolt improved dramatically (surprise) once the tires were attached to the car.

Posted in Improvements, Storyline, Conversion | No Comments »

June 28, 2007 by Rob.

Chris R from AustinEV brought over some ammeter shunts so we could measure the auxiliary circuits. Here is what we found:

• Vacuum pump = 6 amps (rated at 7)
• Brake lights = 5 amps
• Head lights = 20 amps
• Control board = 1.5 amps

The Astrodyne DC-DC controller is *supposed to be* rated at 30 amps. It runs happily until the pump starts up and then it dies.

We pulled out the Astrodyne and put the old 12V battery back in place.  I’m working to find a new home for the P.O.S. so it can trickle charge the battery while the car is on.

I have a 1000 mA (aka 1 Amp) power supply that goes on when I plug in for charging.

Posted in Parts, Improvements, AustinEV, Conversion | 3 Comments »

June 28, 2007 by Rob.

It may be an EV cliche, but using the gas door for the plug is pretty much required.

Posted in Pictures, Conversion | 1 Comment »

June 28, 2007 by Rob.

Under the title “Wire Tapping,” my work on the RAVolt project was covered by the Westlake Picayune on 6/28/2007 page 9. There is no online content so I can’t post a link

I’m really happy with the article, I think that the author, Ed Allen, did a great job covering the background and challenges for the project. It was in the People section of the paper and Ed’s focus was on what led me to take on the project and my feelings about it. He also included a lot of Alex’s input and comments.

I’ll see about getting an online copy.

One interesting (but unsurprising) note: the project name RAVolt and that I’ve blogged the conversion were not mentioned in any way in the article.

Posted in EV News, Storyline, AustinEV | 1 Comment »

June 28, 2007 by Rob.

After seeing the power draw from the brakes, I decided to order some LEDs bulb replacements.  I keep imagining the batteries leaking electrons whenever I press on the brakes.
I hope they arrive in time for the parade!  The parade will be 95% hitting the brakes, 5% crawling at least possible speed.  Sounds like a normal day in the office.

Posted in Parts, Conversion | No Comments »